OsNF-YB7 inactivates OsGLK1 to inhibit chlorophyll biosynthesis in rice embryo.

Yang, Zongju; Bai, Tianqi; E, Zhiguo; Niu, Baixiao; Chen, Chen · Elife · 2024

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

As a master regulator of seed development, Leafy Cotyledon 1 (LEC1) promotes chlorophyll (Chl) biosynthesis in <i>Arabidopsis</i>, but the mechanism underlying this remains poorly understood. Here, we found that loss of function of <i>OsNF-YB7</i>, a <i>LEC1</i> homolog of rice, leads to chlorophyllous embryo, indicating that <i>OsNF-YB7</i> plays an opposite role in Chl biosynthesis in rice compared with that in <i>Arabidopsis</i>. OsNF-YB7 regulates the expression of a group of genes responsible for Chl biosynthesis and photosynthesis by directly binding to their promoters. In addition, OsNF-YB7 interacts with Golden 2-Like 1 (OsGLK1) to inhibit the transactivation activity of OsGLK1, a key regulator of Chl biosynthesis. Moreover, OsNF-YB7 can directly repress <i>OsGLK1</i> expression by recognizing its promoter in vivo, indicating the involvement of OsNF-YB7 in multiple regulatory layers of Chl biosynthesis in rice embryo. We propose that OsNF-YB7 functions as a transcriptional repressor to regulate Chl biosynthesis in rice embryo.

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